India carried out a record 20,138 organ transplants in 2025, the highest ever in a single year, the government said on Monday as it marked the 16th Indian Organ Donation Day with the launch of several new initiatives aimed at strengthening organ donation, improving transparency and expanding access to transplantation service
The national event, organised by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) in New Delhi, was attended by Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare and Chemicals & Fertilisers Anupriya Patel, senior health officials, donor families, transplant recipients, healthcare professionals and representatives from States and Union Territories.
Addressing the gathering, Patel described organ donation as “the highest expression of compassion,” saying it offers a second chance at life to patients suffering from end-stage organ failure. She paid tribute to deceased organ donors and their families, whose decisions have strengthened India’s organ donation movement.
The Minister said India has crossed five lakh Aadhaar-verified organ donation pledges since the launch of the national digital pledge portal in 2023. She attributed the growing public participation to sustained awareness campaigns and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal encouraging citizens to support organ donation and facilitate timely transportation of organs.
Highlighting the country’s progress, Patel said the number of organ transplants has increased from 4,990 in 2013 to 20,138 in 2025, making it the highest annual figure recorded so far. She noted that India now ranks third globally in total organ transplants, after the United States and China, while continuing to hold the top position worldwide in living donor organ transplants.
She added that deceased donor organ transplants have increased more than fourfold, rising from 837 in 2013 to 3,526 in 2025, although a significant gap between demand and organ availability still remains.
The Minister said misconceptions continue to be a major obstacle to organ donation and stressed that no major religion prohibits the practice, describing it as a humanitarian act rooted in compassion and service.
On the occasion, the Government launched ‘Jug Jug Jiyo Abhiyaan’, a year-long nationwide awareness campaign aimed at taking the message of organ donation to communities across the country. It also unveiled ‘e-प्रत्यारोपण’, a unified digital platform integrating hospitals, doctors, donors, recipients and other stakeholders into a single technology-enabled system for registration, wait-list management, organ allocation and monitoring.
A new NOTTO Mobile App was also launched to provide easier access to organ donation and transplantation-related services and information.
To strengthen the organ transplantation framework, the MoHFW released the National Brain Stem Death Certification Guidelines and the National Guidelines on Swap Transplantation, which are intended to standardise procedures and improve the implementation of transplantation programmes across States and Union Territories.
Patel highlighted that the Government has established a nationwide institutional network comprising NOTTO, five Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organizations (ROTTOs), 26 State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organizations (SOTTOs) and nearly 1,200 registered hospitals to strengthen coordination and improve organ donation services.
She also noted that under the National Organ Transplant Programme, financial assistance is being provided to States for infrastructure development, donor maintenance, organ retrieval and transportation. Kidney transplantation has been included in the Health Benefit Package under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY), while financial support for economically weaker patients is available through the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi.
Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava said the launch of the new digital platform, mobile application and national guidelines would improve transparency, coordination and efficiency in India’s organ donation ecosystem. She added that the NOTTO-ROTTO-SOTTO network now spans 31 States and Union Territories, while ten new AIIMS institutions have begun providing kidney transplantation services. AIIMS Jodhpur, AIIMS Bhubaneswar, AIIMS Patna and AIIMS Rishikesh have also initiated liver transplantation, while AIIMS Bhopal has started heart transplantation services.
Director General of Health Services Dr. Loveneesh G. Krishna said Indian Organ Donation Day commemorates the country’s first successful deceased organ transplant performed on August 3, 1994, and called upon citizens to pledge their organs and tissues to strengthen the life-saving movement.
During the event, the NOTTO Annual Report 2025-26 and the latest edition of the NOTTO e-Newsletter were released. The annual report highlighted that more than 2.58 lakh citizens pledged to donate their organs and tissues in 2025, reflecting growing public awareness and participation.
The event also honoured States, Union Territories, hospitals, transplant professionals and donor families for their contributions to the national organ donation programme. PGIMER Chandigarh received the award for the Best Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (Northern Region), Tamil Nadu was recognised as the Best State for recording the highest number of deceased organ donors, Assam received the award for the Best State in the North Eastern Region, and Delhi was honoured as the Best Union Territory for its contribution to organ donation and transplantation services.
